In wireless communications, control channels are used to facilitate the transmission of system control information that is required in its operation. The amount of control information becomes considerably large in a broadband communication system, which is typically used to provide multimedia services. For example, system control information required in a broadband system may include signal acquisition mechanisms for mobile stations, radio resource allocation for DL and UL transmission, control instructions, feedback of system parameters and acknowledgements, and information for other system functionalities. In order to efficiently and effectively transmit such large amounts of control information, certain methods and apparatus are needed to organize the information and to determine when and how the information is transmitted.